Shadows and Cherry Blossoms
by A Lost Angel
Summary: What will a day of cloud watching bring two people trying to forget there lost loves, as Shikamaru and Sakura trying and move on with there love lives. Will a chance to sit and watch the clouds together bring them together? Update; CH4 back from the Beta!
1. Shikamaru's Day

((This is my first try at a Fan Fiction so please R&R if you would and let me know what you think. I do not own any Naruto Characters at all, they are all Property of Kishi and company))

It was a beautiful spring day; the sun was rising brightly in the east shining over the whole of Konoha as he gazed at it. Nara Shikamaru was sitting at his favorite spot in the whole village, a nice tall sloping hill with an old oak tree, watching as the clouds rolled beautifully by in the pure blue skies.

_~Wish I was a cloud on a day like this…~_

That was the only thought he had on his mind as he looked at the beautiful image before his eyes. He slowly toyed with a blade of grass between his lips as he opted to lie down with his head cradled in his hands, enjoying his peaceful day off.

Of course it often seemed when he was at his most peaceful…

"HEY! Shikamaru, how can you just lie around all day on a beautiful day like this?", Yamanaka Ino said in her normal loud tone. She came up and stared at him with her arms crossed leaning over and blocking his view.

_~What a drag… Can't she spend her day off with out getting in the middle of mine!?~_

That was the thought that screamed as he looked at Ino and shook his head, as he let the piece of grass fall from his lips.

"Because it is a beautiful day Ino, that's how... ", Shikamaru said with a very loud sigh as he stared at her with a frown on his face, his tone hard and clear in how annoyed he was at her. "... Aren't you supposed to be working today?", he asked trying to change the subject; he just wanted to spend the day watching the clouds.

Ino scowled, staring at him even harder and from the darkness of the tree's shadow, she huffed and pointed at him as she spoke, "For your information I AM working! Unlike you I don't get to slack off all day! You know what your problem is?" She leaned into his face as she said this last part and poked him in the chest. "Woman hate guys who are lazy do nothings and by now, you would have found a girlfriend, if only you weren't such a slacker!"

This only made Shikamaru shake his head at her and look at her with a blank expression. "Then why don't you go bother Sai then or at least go back to your work, your blocking my view.", he said in a low tone, as he carefully removed her finger from his chest.

_~ Can't she stay out my life, most of all my love life? ~_

He thought to himself while muttering how troublesome she was out loud, which only made a now annoyed Ino, get even more frustrated. She stood up and scoffed at Shikamaru as she turned away and re-crossed her arms. "Sometimes I can't believe I am on the same team with you and Choji, both of you have no CLUE whatsoever about us women!", Ino said with frustration...

"You're just mad that Choji found some one before you.", Shikamaru snapped back, oblivious to the veins protruding on Ino's face. Her complexion quickly escalated to an angry red and it looked as if steam was about to pour out of her ears and nose.

"S-SHE is just d-dating him out of PITY or s-something, yes! Girls really don't like big guys, you know!? Neither do guys like big girls! Th-That's why I got to stay on my diet!", she stammered. She turned around and stomped off grumbling out loud as she made her way back to the flower store, secretly hoping to run into Sai on the way.

Shikamaru just laughed to himself as he said out loud, "She should gain a few pounds then guys might actually like her looks..." He smirked a little as he watched the thin, long-haired, platinum-blond and troublesome team mate fade into the distance. He then went back to watching the clouds with a small sigh as he smelt the scent of the grass and tree washing over him as a cool spring breeze blew by.

He shut his eyes and sunk deep into the scent of spring. His hands shifted behind his head as he leaned back in his intertwined fingers and let the smell awash him. Soon enough he was relaxed and continued enjoying his day alone. He listened to the birds humming and singing as they fluttered in the oak tree above him. He could also hear the faint buzzing of insects in the grass surrounding him and it sounded as if they were trying to complete the birds up in the tree. He concentrated a little trying to find harmony in the myriad of sounds but had to stop after hearing approaching footsteps, the crunching of chips and the smell of BBQ wafting into the air.

"Hey Choji… What's up?", Shikamaru asked with a smug look and with his eyes still closed.

Akimichi Choji, Shikamaru best friend in the whole world, munched down one his chips happily before saying in his usual kind and friendly tone. "Not much, just enjoying my day off after our mission. Beautiful day to watch the clouds, isn't it?", replied Choji as he sat down on the grass near the tree, still munching on a few more BBQ flavored chips. Shikamaru opened his eyes and sat up. Choji reached the bag of chips to him and Shikamaru took one for himself.

"Yep.", was all Shikamaru could muster as he brought the chip to his lips and ate it slowly as his friend eagerly munched away across from him. They both watched the clouds for a few minutes, enjoying the sight before them as the large white puffy clouds floated in front of the sun with their shadows creeping slowly over Konaha. Finally Choji broke the silence.

"Ino was here earlier, wasn't she?", Choji asked in a tone that came off more as a statement than a question. Choji was one of the few people who could read him like a book, or so he claimed. Even though Shikamaru disagreed, it was something his husky friend took a lot of pride in being able to do.

"Yeah...", Shikamaru replied with a loud sigh, slightly annoyed at being reminded about her being there earlier. He crossed his arms and turned to look over at his friend who was now scowling a little, obviously trying to figure out why Shikamaru was not so happy about that question. He got it!

"She got on you again calling you lazy, didn't she?"

Shikamaru grumbled quietly at the knowing smirk on his friend's chubby face as he finished off one bag of chips and opened a fresh one. Shikamaru adjusted himself to lean on the tree trunk and stretched out his arms and back while pulling his knees forward. His gaze was still fixed over the village and the sky.

"When ISN'T she calling me lazy?", Shikamaru asked rather loudly, resulting in a chuckle from his friend who nodded in agreement at that question. He took a few chips from Choji's bag and looked back at the clouds. "She just too bossy for her own good sometimes…" Shikamaru continued speaking, mainly to himself as he slowly munched down the chips he had taken.

Choji sighed and let out a loud 'uh-huh', in reply to this statement before saying, "I think she still has a thing for you and thinks if she's bossy enough, you will go out with her."

Shikamaru turned to look at his friend's face and grumbled again at this statement before sighing and turning back to the sky. "Ino has a better chance at that if she was less bossy and more understanding, instead of bitching at me for enjoying my day off how I want to. Besides Ino and I are like a brother and a sister more than boyfriend and girlfriend.", he said. Choji just nodded in understanding at what his friend was saying. "'sides… Ino had her chance and passed it up, not my fault...", Shikamaru added with a long drawn-out sigh as he took a few more chips to munch.

Choji sighed as he heard this and nodded in agreement, before saying, "Yep, though I doubt Ino thinks like that. For how she acts like she knows everything about what guys want, she really has no clue about us at all.", he said while chuckling at the irony in that.

Shikamaru just smiled at the comment, "So true, she stills gets flustered when I mention your girlfriend." He said looking at Choji, grinning at the thought of her girlfriend, Umeko. He began to laugh thinking about how angry Ino got when she found out that Choji had a girlfriend before Ino had found a boyfriend. She would always suggest that he had to lose weight to find a girlfriend, since as she thought girls had no interest in 'thick-boned' guys.

Shikamaru chucked along with his best friend at the memories of Ino's shock and surprise when Choji introduced Umeko to her. They reminisced about that for a little while before falling silent again to resume their restful pastime.

"Are you still thinking about Temari?", Choji asked without hesitation, breaking the silence and giving his friend a curious look. He hated how good Choji was at reading him sometimes, most of all when it came to such things.

"Sort of…", was all Shikamaru could say, now thinking about his ex-girlfriend, Temari. They decided to end it a while back for one reason. Temari wanted to stay in Sunagakure because she was not only the Suna ambassador to Konaha, but Garaa's older sister and currently second in command, among other responsibilities. She wanted him to move to Sunagakure so they could spend more time together.

However, after careful consideration, Shikamaru saw that he couldn't leave Konoha. His home was here and he too had many responsibilities like family and clan, as the next clan leader, his friends and almost all he cared about was also here; but most of all his promise to Asuma and the Will of Fire he entrusted to him.

Asuma's death had made it clear what his duties were and where they lay and that he could not let them go. He had also vowed to help raise his late sensei's child as well as take care of Yuhi Kurenai. Kurenai was Asuma's lover and mother of his child, whom he had entrusted to Shikamaru's care; his dying wish.

They constantly fought and it was no longer pretty to hear after a while. Neither wanted to leave their hometown, but couldn't let the other go. They loved each other but the distance was not helping. They wanted to be close, they wanted to be together but neither wanted to let go of their duties and responsibilities. In the end, they both decided to go their separate ways before the fighting and distance ruined their friendship as well as their budding relationship.

Choji knew all of this. He overheard some of the fights and also witnessed just how bad things could get. Shikamaru almost never yelled but when they fought over these issues, Shikamaru would sometimes lose his control. Choji had also come to understand why. Shikamaru held a deep sense of family and would not willingly do anything that would hurt them, the clan or the village. Coming from a large clan himself as well as being the next heir to the clan helped Choji gain an even deeper understanding of where Shikamaru was coming from. Responsibilities to your clan ran deep especially when you are the son of the current heir and next in line to take his place.

Temari had family to take care of in the Suna that needed her, but Kankuro and Gaara could learn to deal without her being there all the time. If she chose to leave Suna and stayed in the Konaha her duties could be passed on to someone else in her village, if she truly wanted to be with Shikamaru there was no way Gaara would have disagreed. Shikamaru had been told so by Gaara himself that if Temari wanted to stay with him in the Kohana she would have his support as her brother as well as the Kazekage. Yet Temari insisted on him leaving Konaha and going to Suna to live with her. She refused to believe that it also meant Shikamaru would be abandoning his responsibilities to his clan, his friends and even the village.

The two friends sat silently thinking of this for what seemed like a while. "She was a troublesome woman…", Shikamaru said shutting his eyes once more. "But that's why you loved her and she also loved you for being a slacker.", his friend replied standing up to adjust his body armor and red top. "Its sad she did not seem to want to give up her home in Suna to make a home here, she seemed to be happy here.", Choji added.

"Yeah…" was the reply that came and looked over at his friend with a forced smile as he tried to stop thinking about Temari and everything between them. Choji noticed this and frowned briefly before saying, "Well I should go see Umeko, she should be on her break soon. You want to come join me and get some Yakiniku while we wait for her?"

Umeko was one of the waitresses at Choji's favorite 'All You Can Eat' Yakiniku place, a place they all would often go with Asuma to eat after completing their missions.

"No thanks, Choji... maybe some other time." Shikamaru replied as his friend finished off his second bag of chips and dusted off his hands. "... Tell her I said hello though." He moved around in the grass laying back down so he could stare up into the leaves of the oak tree he had been sitting under.

"Will do!", Choji said in his cheeriest voice as he left his friend alone with his cloud watching, hoping Shikamaru would not dwell too long on Temari. Just as he started leaving, Haruno Sakura came running up towards them.


	2. Sakura's Day

Sakura had been having one busy day since she woke up because of working at the Konoha Hospital helping out the doctors and medical staff. Some patients complained about everything she did from how old she was to how she was treating them. A few unfortunate ones, who seemed to think that since she was a young woman they could hit on her or touch her as they pleased, wound up with more injuries than they came in with. The civilian doctors did not like it but the other medical-nins thought it was funny as did many of the young nurses.

Tsunade's training had rubbed off in more ways than just her strength and medical knowledge and skill, her short fuse had rubbed off on her as well. The Fifth Hokage and one of the legendary Sannin was well known for her short temper. It was so easy for her to absorb that trait, after all, it was something Sakura already had to start with. Some would say Tsunade had actually helped Sakura control her temper better; of course those people had not seen her working at the hospital.

Whatever the case was, after working from dawn to dusk taking care of patients who were either disrespectful or trying to feel you up, any one would be more than a little frustrated. Her frustrations grew as she had to deal with Tsunade after her stressful day at the hospital. The Fifth Hokage was always trying to get out of as much paper work as she could so she could sneak off to gamble or get drunk; most often both.

Sakura found Tsunade face-down in a pile of papers snoring away with a half-empty bottle of sake on the table next to her, with Shizune sitting in her chair working on some of the paperwork that could not wait. Tonton was sitting at her feet as Sakura continued to try and wake the Hokage up.

"Tsunade-sama! I have this morning's report from the hospital.", Sakura almost yelled as she slammed her report down in front of Tsunade who jumped in her sit and blinked at her as she got herself together.

"Huh… Oh, good morning, Sakura. You are already done at the hospital? How did things go?", Tsunade asked as she tried to play off the fact that she had been sleeping, and a bit hung over. She picked up Sakura's report and started to read it as Shizune sighed and smiled to herself, thankful that Sakura was there to help. Shizune had been taking care of her for years now albeit with little or no change on Tsunade's part.

Tsunade started to chuckle as she looked at Sakura with a raised blond eyebrow. She motioned to Shizune that she wanted to sit in her chair and resumed reading the report. Shizune got up promptly and rearranged the papers on her desk to remove the ones she had already completed. Tsunade got up and started making her way towards her desk. Her two long ponytails swayed from side-to-side as she shook her head. "Sakura, you are supposed to be helping the patients, not making them worse...", Tsunade commented, no longer chuckling.

"Yes, ma'am... but I made sure they were not serious injuries. Besides they should not be groping me if they don't want to get hurt." Sakura said in her own defense. The comment made Tsunade and her assistant, Shizune laugh lightly and in unison. Tonton managed a smile and a nod of approval and quickly made her way towards Sakura, who smiled back at her and picked her up.

"I'd be a liar if I didn't say I have probably done worse in my time to people like that, but really Sakura I thought you more level headed." Tsunade said, now fully awake and finished with Sakura's report.

"Yes, ma'am. I will work on breaking their noses instead of their limbs.", Sakura replied with a smirk on her beautiful face, her bright emerald eyes sparkling with a violent intent that made Tsunade proud.

"That's my girl...", Tsunade said, proud and smiling back at her apprentice

"Tsunade-sama!" exclaimed Shizune almost immediately, in a mix of horror and amusement at the conversation, as well as Tsunade's approval of Sakura's use of violence. She tried hard to stifle her own laughter.

"What is wrong Shizune?" Tsunade said with a slight smile on her face, looking at her assistant, as she settled down in her chair looking at her ever looming pile of paperwork. If nobody ever mentioned it, paperwork was this Hokage's greatest enemy ever.

She frowned at how much she had to do before looking over at Sakura. "I guess I should get to work so we can continue our advance training this evening. Why don't you take some time to relax while I slay this beast here on my desk?" Just then a messenger pigeon flew into the office with a scroll on its talon and landed on one of the stacks of books and papers beside the desk, startling everyone in the room.

Shizune moved over and took the scroll from the pigeon, who flew off after its message was delivered. She handed the tiny scroll to Tsunade who frowned more as she read it. She placed it on her desk when she was done and sighed as she quickly started to write up a mission request.

"Sakura, go and find Choji while you're taking some time off before our training. It's his day off but it looks like we have a mission request that he is best suited to handle. I hate interrupting his day off, most of all after they just got back from a mission last night but let him know that he should be ready to leave the village before sunset.", Tsunade said half-asking, half-ordering, while filling the request form.

Sakura watched and listened to what Tsunade was saying and doing and nodded, "Yes, ma'am."

"He will probably be hanging out with Shikamaru and knowing him, look for the shadiest spot you can find with the best view of the sky...", Tsunade suggested, with a smug look on her face, proud at how well she knew most of all the routines of the 'Konaha 11'.

"Yes ma'am, thank you Tsunade-sama.", Sakura replied, now standing at attention. Tsunade nodded back and she quickly turned and left the office. She made her way out of the Hokage's mansion and headed to the tall hill with a huge oak tree growing there. It was near the Konoha Ninja Academy which had a great view of not only the sky but most the Konaha as well.

As she made her way, she thought about Shikamaru and all she knew about him; which was not a lot but enough to get a sense of what kind of person he is. He was laid-back and cool-headed for the most part, a tactical genius with an IQ over 200, and had strong sense of self and friends and most of all a respect and devotion to those he cared for.

The last part she had learned first hand and it was after seeing him with Yuhi Kurenai. Sakura had been the one Tsunade placed in charge of Kurenai's pregnancy. After Asuma's death Shikamaru was always there when Kurenia was getting a check up, whether it was in the room with her or in the waiting room; even meeting her as she was leaving from her appointments if he was too busy to be present.

She was a little surprised when she first saw this; it seemed like something that was far too troublesome for Shikamaru to worry about. Something that he would have no interest in at all, Shikamaru was not someone she ever thought of as the kind of guy to care that much about something that was very simple and basic. Yet he was there each time, making sure Kurenai and Asuma's baby was cared for, helping Kurenai home and with anything she needed, just like he was its father.

In a sense he was, Sakura realized after overhearing the two of them talking one day after Kurenia's appointment. He had promised to help raise, protect and teach her child, taking on the duties of making sure Kurenia's baby would have a father figure. Even though Kurenai told him he really did not need to go that far, Shikamaru just calmly told her that he did and left it at that with a smile on his face.

Sakura had never thought Shikamaru of all people would go out of his way like that and even beyond what was asked of him to make sure that Kurenai and her baby were okay. Sakura figured when Kurenai had told him that he did not need to be there for her check-ups he would have happily agreed, not quietly insist that he did need to be there.

Obviously, Sakura had not really known Shikamaru personally. Having only dealt with him professionally on some missions here and there, other then that and what Ino had told her. Which was not much other then her complaining about him never listening to her and always acting so lazy. The way Ino could be sometimes made Sakura understand why Shikamaru wouldn't listen to her.

Sakura never told Ino that, even though there were plenty of time she wanted to. There were plenty more times that she had to stop herself from telling Ino off as well. Ino could be cold, selfish and bossy at times. She had her nice points and could be a good friend at times, but that did not make her a favorite and she guessed Shikamaru knew that well.

But between the few missions with Shikamaru and Ino's whining, Sakura had never really gotten to know him until she saw him with Kurenai. Actually, she was never that interested in him really until then. It was not that she did not like Shikamaru, they just did not socialize that much together or hang in the same circles.

Yet seeing how mature and caring he could be was something that had Sakura interested in the so-called lazy ninja. Knowing him, one would realize that he was anything but good-for-nothing as she could see now.

He also worked as a teacher at the Academy with Iruka-Sensei and has been doing so for a little more than a year now. He is also one of the Chuunin exam proctors. For someone who labeled everything as 'too troublesome', Sakura was amazed at how much responsibility Shikamaru had at as of late.

He was much more mature than most of the guys in her age group despite his laid back nature, which was something Sakura found attractive.

Yes. "Attractive" was what Shikamaru was becoming to Sakura, the more she learned about the lazy 'shadow' man, most of all compared to the men she had been dealing with in and outside her life.

Yes. Sakura had been dating off and on for a while now, ever since she came back after her failed mission to get Sasuke back. The one person who was once the love of her life had tried to run her through and kill her. Since then she has been looking for someone that she could be with and enjoy doing so. She had given up on Sasuke after that mission, the fact that he could try and kill her like he had with no remorse or hesitation had shown it was about time she let go. She knew she could not love him and she now only wanted to bring Sasuke back for Naruto who still thought of him as his brother.

Unfortunately for Sakura, dating had not gone very well for her. If the guys she dated were not totally immature for her, they were perverts who thought dating her meant getting into her pants as fast as they could, which was not something Sakura liked at all. Those guys often found themselves flat on their faces after she decked them one chakra-infused punch.

They were lucky that they did not find themselves with broken bones when they persisted in trying to grope her after she said no. It reminded her of the men who thought they could have their way with her when she was working in the hospital. For some reason, they all seemed to think that just because she was a kunoichi meant that she was easy. After all, there were some kunoichi out there that did enjoy a lot of one night stands because of how the life of a ninja was. Easy, was something that Sakura was not and she made it painfully obvious to anyone who thought otherwise.

Sakura was not someone to just give her self to any man simply because he was good looking or smart. She was not being too proud, all she wanted was to give her body to some one she cared for and loved. She had loved and waited for Sasuke for so long, clinging to the thought of bringing him back and as the man she once loved. She simply would not give her virginity to the first man who wanted it; she took a lot of pride in herself to fall for something like that.

However, thanks to that fact Sakura's attempts at dating had all been futile, not that she even cared really. She had been too wrapped up in her training with Tsunade and becoming as great a medical nin as her master, Tsunade who was known to be greatest medical mind alive. Though Sakura did feel lonely at times, she had Naruto who was more like a brother to her and she loved him to death but it still wasn't enough, she wanted more. Someone that she could really love and would love and respect her back equally, if not greater.

She tried to suppress that loneliness for now telling herself that she was too young to worry about it and had plenty of time left in her life, but that did not work as well as she wished. She wanted to have someone that was her equal and who would see the real her and love her dearly for that.

These were the kinds of thoughts that ran threw her mind as she walked towards the Academy and the hill with the old oak tree where Shikamaru was, watching the clouds with Choji.

She smiled a little as she walked up the hill towards the two as Choji got up and started to leave. Sakura ran towards him with a scroll in hand.

"Hey Choji!", she shouted as she came up to him and held out the scroll. "Tsunade-sama asked me to deliver this to you.", she continued and let Choji take the scroll from her.

"Man, why did she have to give me a mission today? We just got back from a week long mission last night." Choji complained as he opened the scroll.


	3. Watching the Sunset

Shikamaru looked over from his spot under the tree, when he heard Sakura talking and handing what looked like a mission scroll to Choji as he leaned up off the ground and looked at her. He smiled a little at Sakura as he stood up and stretched when he heard that Tsunade had given Choji a mission.

"Oh? What kind of a mission Choji? Should I go get Ino?", he asked with a sigh afraid that they all have to go on a mission after just getting back, which was not out of the ordinary but still strange nonetheless.

Sakura smiled back at Shikamaru when she saw his friendly smile towards her before hearing him speak, asking if they all had a mission again.

"No Shikamaru, you don't need to get Ino for this, from what I understand, Tsunade said this mission is something for Choji alone.", Sakura said in her kind voice, as Choji rolled up the scroll and sighed. He turned to Shikamaru and said, "Yeah, I guess one the villages in the Land of Rivers near the border needs help."

"Ah yes, it's the rainy season there right now and they rely on their dams during this time of the year to hold up and keep the rivers back.", Shikamaru added as he looked at both them.

Choji rolled up the scroll and put it away. "Yep, they want me to help protect them from some bandits that are reported to be near by area that raid villages when the men go to reinforce the dams over the rainy season." Choji said continuing to relate what was on the scroll, with a slight frown as he tucked his orders into a pocket and shrugged. "Oh well, at least I still get to have lunch with Umeko before I get going."

Shikamaru heard this and chuckled a little at his slightly displeased friend, before stopping to say. "Yeah, I am sure she will understand though, bud. Besides its just a simple bandit run, those are normally easy so you'd probably be home in less than 3 days depending on the weather there and back.", he said trying to cheer his friend up.

"Who is Umeko? Is she your girlfriend Choji?", Sakura asked in a calm but somewhat shy tone, She was a little surprised to think Choji had a girlfriend and she wouldn't have heard of it.

Choji nodded with a grin on his face as he answered. "Yep! We been dating for a few months now, I am surprised that Ino didn't tell you Sakura. She is a waitress at my favorite Yakiniku 'All You Can Eat' restaurant that we go too.", Choji answered.

Sakura smiled and nodded happily at Choji. "Oh! Well that's great to hear Choji! No, Ino did not tell me that, I am going to have to yell at her. I would have come and celebrated with you both had I known. I'm sorry that I had to ruin your day off, Choji." Sakura said frowning at the end as she apologized.

Choji just shook his head. "It's not your fault, a ninja's work is never done, or so they say. Besides she knows how it is.", he retorted calmly trying to assure Sakura that all was well.

Every one who lived in the Konoha had a pretty good idea of how the life of a ninja was. Most civilians who worked in the restaurants, general stores and shops opted to keep their businesses open 24 hours since there was always someone coming or leaving at all hours on a mission. One of the reasons Choji and Umeko get along very well is because they were used to the odd work hours in a ninja's life. They met when she was working a late shift and Choji had dropped by to grab a bite after a mission with Shikamaru.

Choji chuckled as he waved goodbye to the two of them and left Sakura and Shikamaru alone.

Shikamaru sighed and sat back down under the tree. "So how is the training with Tsunade-sama going? I hear from Ino you are getting some advanced training from her?", he asked as Sakura smiled and looked down at him, before taking a sit nearby and joined him in his fixation with the clouds.

"Yeah, I bet she was complaining about it too when she told you.", she replied with a slight chuckle.

Shikamaru snickered and nodded at her. "Yep, that she did. She is really been working hard to learn more medical jutsu since…", he paused briefly and sighed before continuing, "... Asuma-sensei died. But yes she was complaining how Tsunade-sama never had any time to train her since she was always busy training you for some advance medical jutsu or something."

Sakura saw how he paused before speaking of Asuma's death and frowned a little, before nodding as he finished his comment about Ino and said, "Well, Shizune is training Ino and Shizune is as good as Tsunade-sama at medical jutsu, besides I've been training with Tsunade-sama longer than Ino. Tsunade is trying to teach me some of her more personal medical jutsu… I guess its cause she thinks I have a gift for it." She managed a nervous smile when she caught Shikamaru gazing at her as she spoke from the corner his eyes before nodding.

"Well, if anyone would know what it takes to be a great medical mind, it would be her. She is the greatest in the world after all... or one of them at least.", he said making Sakura smile a little. He turned back to look at the now slowly setting sun and sighed a little. Sakura blushed briefly, noticing that he was almost flirting with her. She stared at Shikamaru a little, while he was watching the clouds as the sun shined cast its golden rays on the village below. The orange light penetrated the leaves of the great big old oak they were sitting under, making beautiful beams stretch from the canopy and down to the ground... It was quite an amazing sight to behold...

The orange and golden tints mixing with the shadow of the tree as one beam of light washed over him, accenting his face and features in such a way that it truly made him stand out; letting her see just how handsome he really was. Shikamaru's features were firm yet not overly harsh, his face was simple but had this smile and look in his eyes that fit it.

Feeling her gaze on him, Shikamaru turned to look at Sakura, to only see her turn away shyly and see a small blush on her face. A fact which caught him by surprise, had she been checking him out? He let that thought linger as he finally broke the silence and spoke.

"So Sakura, what you been doing lately, I mean outside of training with Tsunade-sama.", he asked glancing at her in the light. A little smile on his lips as he noticed how the shadows and the light coming through the leaves made her look as she spoke,

"Nothing really…I just do whatever I can to relax you know. Hang out with Ino when she isn't being a pain; go shopping and stuff like that with her. Play Shogi and other games sometimes with my father or what ever they want when we get a chance to spend family time together…Just anything to distract myself for a little bit from everything.", she said as Shikamaru took in the sight of her under the light of the oak.

The light coming through the thin leaves making her emerald green eyes shine and sparkle, the shadows showing off her feminine shape and curves wonderfully. Her breasts small and perky standing out threw her top, her hips fitting well with her small frame accenting her legs which where long and lean. A smile on her lips making her face look gorgeous and her eyes stand out as it stood out in the shadows of the tree. Shikamaru had never really noticed how good looking Sakura was until then, he had always considered her pretty but never really took notice of her; but for some reason at that moment he could barely look away from her.

Shikamaru noticed her looking towards him, he turned away from gazing at her and back to the sky, nodding with a small blush.

"That's good family time is important as are friends, and I didn't know you played Shogi; you any good at it?" He asked as he tried to hide the blush; and failed.

Sakura noticed his blush and his attempts to hide it and the fact he had been staring at her, which brought a blush to her own cheeks as she spoke,

"I am okay I guess…It's not a game I play often but my father enjoys it and says I am really good. It's more his thing than mine though…I like trivia games more." She finished answering and began moving a little closer towards Shikamaru.

He noticed this and smiled as he moved against the tree getting comfortable, leaning a little closer towards her before speaking,

"Oh? I am not much a fan of Trivia, too boring and all about memorizing. I'd rather play something that takes some strategy. Since anyone who can remember a bunch of facts, most of them useless ones in most trivia games, can win at them."

"True but what good is it knowing a bunch of strategies if you do not have the memory to recall them as needed. It's better to be able to remember facts and information on the battle field about known foes than create strategies which might be useless if you are unable to remember the enemies' attacks and weakness. You see why playing games of trivia and memorization is useful…?" She said out loud with a confident tone, giving a smirk to Shikamaru who chuckled and nodded at her; smirking back before saying,

"That's very true, though memorization only gets you so far. If you encounter a foe you never met before or have no information on, without knowing tactics and strategies to use against them all the memorized facts in the world can't help you."

Sakura hearing this, turns towards Shikamaru and with a confident voice, "That may be true. However if you are not able to memorize basic tactics you use in a situation like that as well as have the skill to quickly memorize their attack patterns and skills they use to formulate the correct strategies to apply to the battle, you will fail. Tactics and strategies are useless with out a great memory to back them up.", Shikamaru raised a brow as he turned towards her as well with an odd look on his face before chucking and cracking a grin.

"You are absolutely right there. Even someone good at strategies as I am, if I didn't have a decent memory and ability to notice and retain as many things that stand out about a situation… No strategies I created would be of any real value since they would not take into fact the variables and the unknowns needed to make a good strategy work.", he said with a bit of a laugh before adding with a smile. "I am surprised you don't like Shogi, with thinking like that I bet you really are good at it."

Sakura heard this and smiled brightly at him as she said, "Well maybe we should play together sometime if you like. I never said I didn't like it I just said it is not something I played a lot; it might be nice to get a chance to play it more and with some one who knows the game. My father and I don't get the chance to play all that often…It would be nice to play with some one as smart as you and get to learn the game."

Her eyes gazing at his with the sunset dancing in her emerald eyes which brought a faint blush as he replied, "Then it's a date I guess…We'll have to get together and play a few games sometime."

"Hmm… a date it is then", she replied…

Shikamaru felt her hand brush his and come to a rest there as she turned her head towards the sky and sighed, "It's really beautiful here…" Sakura said in almost a whisper looking at the slowly setting sun and sky ablaze with a vast pallet of yellows, reds, oranges, and grays as the last touches of blue fade away under the rolling clouds which gave it a picturesque feel to it.

She felt him grasp her hand for a moment as he nodded and said with a pleasant sigh, "Why I love watching the clouds, it's calming and peaceful to just sit and watch the beauty of it."

They both sat there still for a moment that seemed to drag on in the beautiful sunset before the ringing of the Konoha Academy clock bell broke the silence, reminding them of the time.

"Oh, it's later than I thought! I should go and see if Tsunade-sama ever got through that paper work she said she wanted to do before our training", said Sakura standing up slowly as the bell chimed off.

"Oh, Well why don't I walk with you…I should be getting home soon any how, been out here all day any way." Shikamaru said with a bit of a yawn as he stood up beside her and looked her in the eyes before adding; "Besides it would be a shame to have you take off on me when I was just getting to enjoy the conversation."

Sakura smiled as she heard his offer to walk with her and felt a blush creep across her face for a moment at the way he added the fact that he was enjoying their talk and the way he looked at her with his dark drown eyes, standing a good bit taller then her and close enough for her to feel him standing over her; his hand still in hers giving it a squeeze.

"Sure…I'd like the company", Sakura fine said sweetly, before adding, "and I am enjoying this conversation too", her voice sweet and flirty as she squeezed his hand back as they started off together.

They walked and talked together, talking about all kinds of different things from there favor books and authors, TV shows and movies; stories about Ino and funny times they had with Naruto.

"So Naruto grabbed the cat right, stepping on its tail and as he does so, the cat just ripped his face to ribbons! If Naruto hadn't tried to hold on to the cat and wrestle with the dang thing instead of letting go, we could have put it in the cat catcher! Funnier thing is the cat was winning before we finally got it in the carrier and calmed it down!" Sakura said as she recalled on their very first mission with Naruto to a smirking Shikamaru as the walked along the empty streets towards the Hokage mansion.

"That sounds like Naruto… He never has figured out when it's best to just let go." That was all Shikamaru said with a chuckle looking over at Sakura, who nodded at his words wholeheartedly, chuckling along with him

They continued on back and forth until they came to the front of the Hokage mansion which brought a small, but noticeable, sigh from Sakura.

"Well I should go see Tsunade-sama and get to the training…if she hasn't forgotten or slipped off to get drunk", her sigh growing louder as she spoke.

"Well if she has ran off I bet you and Shizune will find her and read her the riot act", he said as stretched out his arms and locked them behind his head before asking, "… so if you're free want to go do something tomorrow? It's supposed to be a beautiful day again."

Sakura blushed and smiled at Shikamaru nodding, moving closer as she replied, "Sure, I would love to… maybe we could play a game of Shogi together." She said as started to turn away and enter the manor, before stopping and turning her head as she said, "What time would you be free tomorrow? Incase Tsunade-sama gives me some free time…" She spoke with a sweet flirty tone as she asked him, her looking at his as if she was thinking about something.

"Probably a little after 3pm…After the Academy gets out, Irukia-sensei on a mission so I am subbing for his class." He dropped his arms from behind his head as he spoke, placing his hands in his pockets as he wondered what thought was going threw her mind as she gazed at him over her should standing at the door; a look he could not place on her face.

She smiled as she nodded and opened the door. "See you at 3:30 then." She said as she walked in, giving him a quick glance with that same look before vanishing behind the door.

Shikamaru stood there for a moment before shrugging and taking off towards home with a faint smile on his lips. "Interesting…" Was all he said as he walked away as the street lights of Konaha started to glow one by one as the dusk settled over the village.


	4. Nosey People are Troublesome

Night settled across the Land of Fire and the stars lit up the sky, with the clouds slowly fading away leaving the stars glowing bright like jewels shimmering on a blackened cloth accentuated by half a moon that lit the land. Konoha's nightlife slowly took to life.

Shikamaru sighed, the streets were getting busy around him as the lights and signs came on drawing in the crowds. Trying to avoid being swamped, he cut through a few alleyways on his way home, making his way past stores and restaurants as his mind wandered with thoughts of Sakura.

He had never really thought much about her in the past. After all, when he first met her she had been just another of 'Sasuke-kun's fan girls', clinging to his every word and action like a lost puppy along with the rest of them. Drooling at the sight of the guy and fighting with Ino for his attention. Girls like that never had any sense, or so he had always thought.

Then again, Sakura had been the one girl to become more than simply a fan girl for Sasuke. It didn't take a genius to see that.

What ever it was she saw in him, she had fallen truly in love with the guy and even risked her life for him at least once that he had seen. Of course the moment that stood out most was right before he alongside Naruto, Choji, Kiba and Neji had left after Sasuke when he left to join Orochimaru.

He remembered how hard she cried, the way her eyes seemed as if her heart had been torn away. Her eyes, yes that was the one thing Shikamaru always remembered about Sakura; those beautiful shimmering emerald eyes, eyes that danced and cried and soared with her emotions. Eyes that reminded him of lying under and a tree staring up into the canopy of the forest on a bright sunny cloudless day with the sun shimmering threw the leaves in an endless dance of shades of light greenish hues.

Tears seemed to stain them, mar them, which hurt her beauty. The pain, it darkened them like a dark storm swelling in them.

He remember how they changed ever so as Naruto promised her he'd bring Sasuke back, saying it was a promise of a lifetime; he even remembered the smug smirk that had been on his lips hearings Naruto's words and a feeling as if he had just made their mission all that more important and all that more harder.

Yet those words seemed to make her eyes light up ever so through the pain and the tears, like the sun trying ever so to push away the storm. Giving her emerald tear-filled eyes a faint glow of hope and relief, the kind of hope only Konoha's number one goofball could bring.

Shikamaru stopped as he thought of what Sakura had told him earlier and smiled. Naruto was the only person he had met that seemed to be able to give any one hope and change the worst things around by being too dense to know any better. He didn't know if it was that goofy grin or that loud over-excited voice or the fact that he always seemed to know when someone needed help and was too stubborn to take 'no' for an answer and didn't seem to know anything else but being there for his friends.

Of course the fact that he did not know how to stop often seemed to make a situation worse, and that Naruto didn't know the meaning of the word 'subtle' made things all the more worse since it meant he always took a direct approach to things no matter how delicate the situation was. But then again that was made him so special, no matter how worse Naruto's help might make things, in the long run he always turned everything around and find away to solve the problem; no matter how unorthodox an answer might be.

He chuckled as he started to move again at the same lazy pace he had been before. If he had not been lost in his thoughts about Naruto and paying attention, he would have noticed his cutting through the alleyways had wound him up walking past Ichiraku where the very goofy unorthodox blond-haired, blue-eyed and endlessly grinning ninja he was thinking of was; eating his regular five bowls of ramen.

Naruto was finishing off his second bowl of beef ramen, having already finished off two pork with a hot miso still sitting. Before he took notice, Shikamaru had walked by, then stopped for a moment with one of his odd little smiles Naruto knew he had when he was happy or amused about something. He quickly slurped up his last bowl of beef and eagerly watched Shikamaru stand there lost in his thoughts before he let out a chuckle and started away.

Being as curious as ever, Naruto just had to know why his normally dull and lazy faced friend seemed to be so excited. He picked up the last bowl of ramen and slurped it down in one mighty gulp, paying Teuchi and thanked Ayame with one his cheerful fox like grins, before running after Shikamaru. Who stilled seemed lost in his thoughts before he caught up to him and getting in front his lazy friend with his usual energetic grin.

"Hey Shikamaru, what up?! You seem cheerier then normal, something going on?" He asked as Shikamaru blinked and sighed a little with a small chuckle; having not even noticed Naruto till he was in his face with ramen on his breath.

Shikamaru didn't even realize he had been so obvious in his happiness or that he had been standing in front of the ramen stand for a good half minute until Naruto had suddenly popped up in front of him, completely invading his personal space as he asked him why he seemed so cheerier with his eyes full of what Shikamaru knew was curiosity equal to that which killed that fabled cat they always mention.

Troublesome; that was the situation he found himself in he summarized, he was trying to hurry home and avoid people and would up in a most troublesome spot.

He stopped and sighed and chuckled a little before saying with a shrug, "Hai, I guess you can say that," watching Naruto's eyes glimmer with eagerness as Shikamaru pushed past him as his friend fell in line beside him and started walking with him.

If curiosity really _did _kill the cat…satisfaction supposedly brought it back didn't they say?

"Sooooo, There IS something going on…Hmm…Now what could it be I wonder?" Naruto said as he looked at Shikamaru, his face twisting and contorting comically as he looked him up and down thinking.

"Your Mom gone on a mission?...No then you probably sat at home and watched the clouds…It was a nice cloudy day but unless its totally going to be cloudy for the next week straight I doubt you be excited by something like that…I heard Ino marching back through town when I was doing some shop grumbling so I know its not that she hadn't bugged you today…"

Naruto rambled on as he looked at his lazy friend, trying to figure out what had him in acting so cheery. As he did Shikamaru just silently walked along with him heading towards his home, letting his rambunctious friend ramble away with guesses till…

"Oh…I got it! You met a girl!" Naruto finally exclaimed with a laugh, as if he had just won a ramen eating contest; a proud confident excited laugh. This only grew as he noticed Shikamaru, shoot him a glare and noticed his friend flush a little, confirming his guess.

With the fact that Shikamaru had a indeed met a girl, Naruto started in with all kinds of questions in rapid speed without stopping for an answer; asking who it was before going through every girl he knew guessing, both alive and dead, along with asking when and where and did he like her and did she like him and so on.

After about a minute of this Shikamaru sighed aloud as he muttered how troublesome his blond friend was, before he answered.

"If you must know, it's Sakura." Shikamaru said, with his casual lazy drone and annoyed tone. He kept walking but Naruto stopped for a moment… "Wha…? What you mean?" Naruto asked in a much calmer tone than he had been speaking before as he caught back up with his lazy friend.

Shikamaru sighed again, "I mean, the girl I met you seem so excited over, its Sakura…", his voice was louder now and more firm lacking his normal lazy draw as he went on, "…she came by when I was watching clouds to deliver a mission to Choji who was hanging out for a bit before going to meet his girlfriend. She decided to stay and talk for a while, something we hadn't really done before, and we hit it off I guess. We hung out till she realized the time and had to go back to Tsunade-sama, I walked her back and we are going to go on a date maybe tomorrow. She asked me to help her with her Shogi game, so we are gone go play a few games."

Finishing with one last sigh his hands moved around his back as he stretched and locked his fingers on the back his head. He hoped answering as fully and bluntly as he had would silence his friends endless questioning as well as make sure he understood him fully, then again this was Naruto…

Who had stopped dead as Shikamaru spoke and stood there frozen; Shikamaru shook his head as he started to count down in his head.

_~5… 4… 3… 2… and…~_

"**YOU ASKED SAKURA ON A DATE?!?**"

Naruto shouted as his mind finally seemed to kick back in, his pupils seemingly took over his eyes as his jaw looked like it had hit the sidewalk as his leg that was up in mid-step finally dropped and he nearly fell flat on his face; he had been mid stride when he froze.

"A Shogi Date…", Shikamaru said as Naruto rushed forward and got in front of him again, he was glad that they had made it out of the shopping district at least now and were now alone on the street. He did not need every one staring at him while his blond friend blew a gasket, hearing only the words 'Sakura' and 'date' Shikamaru guessed.

"It's still a date!" Naruto said as he walked with arms crossed next to Shikamaru, who shrugged his shoulders and yawned, "So? ...Its not like it's a '_date_' date… we are just going to play a few games of Shogi…", he replied, letting his arms fall to his sides and glancing at Naruto who was frowning a little.

For a moment, with those whiskers like marks lit up under one the street lights as they grew close to his home, Shikamaru wondered if the cat had look so upset when he finally got the satisfaction of having his curiosity answered. Probably did.

"I do not believe you. You like her don't you?" Naruto said, well grumbled, "You were way to cheery when I saw you standing there, I know you didn't see me till I came over.", he scowled and shook his head before running his fingers through that untamed mess he called a hairstyle.

Shikamaru looked at Naruto and sighed, "I think she is interesting… I'll admit that… I never really spent much time with her before today. I spent some time socializing with her… she is really bright and we enjoy talking together. And her eyes…She has really beautiful eyes…"

Shikamaru stopped as he bit his lip slightly watching Naruto eyebrows rise up at him as he got in front of his friend again and leaned in, "And what ELSE is beautiful hmm?", he said with a mix of a scowl and almost a grin before adding, "You really do like her huh?", his voice having a hint of sarcasm to it as he finally let a smirk take over continuing to walk backwards looking at Shikamaru.

Shikamaru sighed and stopped, looking towards his right seeing they had just reached the outskirts of his clan's lands. "Hey, no secret that I have a thing for pretty eyes…", he said defensively as he turned towards his home. "Besides, isn't the point of going on a date to figure out if you like someone?" Shikamaru asked. Naruto frowned as he watched his friend start down the path into his family's land and just shook his head, "Fair enough…!" Naruto shouted towards Shikamaru as he walked towards his house, shaking his head as he darted off as well.

When Shikamaru made it to his home and entered, he wondered how Sakura's training was going, wondering if it was as troublesome as his time walking home was.

--- ---

Sakura was sweating hard, on her kneels trying to catch her breath and steady her breathing before getting back to her training. This was much harder than she thought it would be when Tsunade-sama told her what she was going to be learning and doing. She stood up, wiped her brow and closed her eyes trying hard to calm down. Soon after that, she bit her thumb drawing some blood and quickly made the handseals, slammed her palm on the ground exclaiming, "_Kuchiyose no Jutsu!_" She focused as much chakra as she could and concentrated hard on the jutsu.

She opened her eyes and watched the black markings of the summoning jutsu fade. The smoke cleared, and frowning in disappointment at the tiny slug on the ground. The slug was thin as her pinky and just slightly thicker than her thumb.

"Dang it…" Sakura muttered in defeat and frustration at her failed summoning, feeling her hair fall around her as she leaned up to look at her master. Tsunade then stood up and approached her student.

"Remember it will take time to master the chakra you need to properly perform a summoning, even a minor one. Take pride in the fact you can summon anything since this is not an easy jutsu, and the fact you been going at it since we started a couple hours ago without a rest is going to affect you. Let's take a break."

Sakura looked at her master and nodded taking in a few breaths, "You sure you aren't just trying to get me to let you at that bottle of sake you have hiding in your desk?", she asked with a half joking tone at a now pouting Tsunade.

"Oh Sakura-chan! Why do you say such mean things, you really think I just want to take a break just to have a drink?", she said with a childish tone. Sakura teased back, "Of course, I know you that well Tsunade-sama.", earning her a well-crafted look of defeat before they both chuckled and silently agreed to end the training for the day.

They made their way to the Hokage's mansion and Tsunade took her sit at her desk as Sakura went to a table near the back windows where tea was brewing, making herself a cup as she watched Tsunade getting out her bottle of sake and eagerly poured herself a cup.

"So Sakura…who is he?" Tsunade asked, as she drank her sake. Sakura sat across from her master, sipping her tea and replied, "What do you mean?" Tsunade grinned at her.

"The guy that has you in the happy mood you have been in since you got back. Who is he?", her voice carried a tone that reminded Sakura of what Ino sounded like when she was trying to dig up good gossip, a low almost sinister but polite and caring tone. Meaning she was not going to stop till she got what she wanted, or Sakura made a big enough stink to make her back off.

"Who says I am in a good mood over a guy?", she said as she looked up across the desk at her master, having chose the latter option; If nothing else Sakura was going to try and make Tsunade work for her gossip.

She watched her face twist into a cat like grin as her eyes glimmered with glee. "Ohh Sakura, now I know it is a guy!", Tsunade said giggling at her young student as she poured herself a new cup of sake as she continued, "Besides there aren't too many things outside meeting a guy that can make a girl glow like that and the fact that you were late getting back…", quickly downing the cup with a happy sigh. She paused after Sakura groaned a little.

"Maybe I was just caught up shopping", Sakura said still sipping her tea, trying to be convincing that it was not a guy she met, failing terribly.

Tsunade's grin grew wider at this failed attempt as she leaned in at her young student, "Is he that special, hm...?", she mused as her dark green eyes sparkled an emerald green, "is it Naruto?", Tsunade said as Sakura nearly choked on her tea.

"NO! God No…Naruto is like family…It's not him!" Sakura said as she tried to swallow, realizing what Tsunade had just got her to do and sighed as her gossiping master chuckled. "Ohhh, so not Naruto hm…then who is it, I wonder?", her aging master said smiling eagerly as Sakura frowned before speaking.

"It is Shikamaru, okay?! God you are worse than Ino…", she said with a scowl, deciding it was best to just get it over with before Tsunade went running off to find out the name by listing off every single guy in the whole village.

The laughter stopped as Tsunade heard who it was, looking at Sakura who was now frowning, before grinning wide as she fingered her drinking cup. "Shikamaru you say?", she said before adding with a chuckle, "I didn't think you liked _slackers_…"

Sakura's expression darkened at this as she snorted a little. "He is not a slacker", she said defensively before realizing she had just walked into another trap. "He may not be the most motivated guy, but he is more mature than half the guys in this village put together. He also, despite his laid back care-free nature, has probably as much or more he is taking care of in his life then most the people I know here, between his working as a Exam proctor and at the Academy part time and missions and taking care of Kurenai, he deserves to try and be laid back when he can."

Tsunade sat there listening at her student defensively talking about Shikamaru and his good points with a Cheshire cat-like grin before finally saying, "Don't forget his also next in line to lead the Nara clan as its Head, since his father is the current leader.", Sakura added, to an already expanded list of duties. "So Sakura when is the wedding?" , Tsunade asked with a giggle as she continued to tease her student.

Sakura's eyes darkened at this as she stuck out her tongue at her giggling master as she downed another cup of her sake, "Oh stuff it Tsunade!", she teased back.

"So I am defending him, it's not like I am in love with him or anything. He is a good guy and doesn't deserve the slacker rep he has, even if he tries to be one. I'll admit it was only after I saw the way he was taking care of Kurenai, I never really thought of him as more than a nice but lazy guy and one my friends, but I can see that was a mistake and there a lot more to him then he lets on." Sakura spoke between sips, her eyes looking into the dark liquid as she finally said, "He is actually quite the charmer, he even asked me on a date tomorrow if I was free. He offered to teach me some stuff in shogi and I agreed. He said we could meet up after his done at the academy around 3:30… "

Tsunade raised an eyebrow as she headed back in her chair and looked at her student, "Oh a date you say? So you're asking me to give you tomorrow off I take it? He must be a charmer if you're calling a boring game like shogi a date, I didn't even think you liked shogi. That is unless…" she paused and emptied the last of her Sake bottle into her glass and pouted as she placed the now empty bottle in the trash, "…you are thinking something much more exciting might happen…", she mused as she drank her final gulp of sake with a sigh. She smirked at the young student and caught her rolling her eyes at her masters comments.

"You can have tomorrow off…" Tsunade said standing up slowly, adjusting her two long thin ponytails behind her shoulders and walked around to the front of her desk slowly adding, "…on two conditions."

Sakura set her tea cup down as she watched her master stand and heard what she said, smiling. She smiled when she had that she could have tomorrow off but quickly scowled at hearing Tsunade state there where conditions. "What kind of conditions?"

"First I am going to work you like I haven't worked you since you started training under me tonight, so be ready to hate me in the morning." Tsuande said with a small grin as Sakura groaned at this, remembering just how hard and rough Tsunade had been when they first started training together, "And the second condition?" Sakura asked as she stood up as well.

Tsunade's grin widened as she turned and started out towards the balcony with a playful glee in her step. "You have to tell me all the dirty little details of your little 'Shogi' date.", she giggled and snickered as she playfully marched outside. Sakura groaned loudly and placed a hand on her forehead, "Correction, you are not worse than Ino, you make her look innocently nosy by comparison!" Sakura said, slowly following her drunk and giddy master out for a night of what she knew would be training from hell.

She looked out at the cloudy night sky and smiled a little, it would be cloudy all tomorrow she could tell; an obsessed cloud watchers definition of a beautiful day, as well as a great day to sit around and play a game like Shogi. She wondered if Shikamaru watched the clouds at night as well as during the day… soon after, Tsunade snapped her back to her training.


	5. Authors Note

I wanted to put this up here so all those that have reviewed and added my Story to there favorites and Alerts would know I have not forgotten this story and do indeed want to update it soon, but I recently got a new PC and have been busy with many other things in my life! But I promise here soon I will get a rough version of Chapter 5 up and out here soon so ever one can read it! I believe I am also going to need a new Beta reader as well so hopefully I will get one soon so you can get nice clean versions of chapter 5 and any and al other chapters to come.


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